Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.) continued his streak of weekly conference calls with Kentucky repporters in which the endangered incumbent proves himself unafraid to speak his mind, this week going after CBS news.
Bunning saved some words for Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s interview with “60 Minutes” on Sunday.
“If I see one more puff piece on Ben Bernanke — ugggh,” the Kentucky senator groaned with disgust. “Well what do you expect out of 60 minutes and CBS news? When somebody’s in trouble, they prop ’em up.”
Bunning wryly suggested that his political fortunes must also be doing well, considering he hasn’t been interviewed by the CBS newsmagazine lately.
“By the way, they haven’t come to see me lately — I guess they don’t think I need propping up,” he added.
Bunning said that the Secretary of the Treasury — both Tim Geithner and his predecessor, Henry Paulson — should be held accountable for the poor management of aid to AIG, resulting in the controversial bonuses at the company.
The Kentucky Republican, who faces a tough reelection challenge in 2010, also said that he will not be joining the latest congressional fad by starting a Twitter account.
“Explain exactly what you mean by twitter,” Bunning said when asked by a reporter whether he’d be setting up an account.